Prime Hunting Area In British Columbia Reopens

Published: August - 2002

"How would you like to hunt a vast area of Northern British Columbia that has seen little to no hunting pressure for almost a decade? Well, you can. The area in question is the famed Lynn Ross area north of Fort St. John. You may recall that Ross, a well-known outfitter, lost this area when he ran into legal trouble and lost his license. The area was forfeited to the government in August of 1993, at which point Darwin Watson of neighbouring Christina Falls Outfitters stepped in to finish out the season. The area then sat dormant until 1999 when the Blueberry First Nation purchased it. Since then, it has seen very little hunting pressure.

"In 2001, nonresident hunters here took one ram, two moose, one goat and four bison. When Ross was operating the area at full capacity, he took over 100 hunters some years and boasted a very high success rate.

"Well, starting this season, the area is going to be fully hunted again under the guidance of Darwin Watson and his wife, Angie, who will operate under the company name, Pink Mountain Guiding and Outfitting. Angie holds the out-fitter's licence for the area, while the Blueberry Band continues to own it, at least for now. Seems the Watsons have an option to purchase the area in 2003 and are currently looking for investors.

"When I spoke with Darwin recently, he had just gotten back from spending 10 days in the area. He was very excited about what he'd seen. He said game numbers were high and that he saw many exceptional animals. Species like sheep, grizzly and moose take a decade or more to reach full trophy potential. Considering that most of this area has been unhunted since 1993, some very fine animals should be taken.

"One species that should be of particular interest to trophy hunters here is Canada moose. This region dominated the trophy books for this species in the past, and there is little reason that it won't again under the........(continued)